Surgical Smoke

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Hi everyone,

I spent the last year working as a perioperative nurse, but I recently quit due to experiencing bad headaches from the surgical smoke and realizing how bad it was for my health. I worked 40 hours a week in that environment with stubborn surgeons who wouldn't use smoke evacuators.

I now worry about developing lung cancer or some other health issue down the road.

Do any of you have these same fears?

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.

I see more and more states making smoke evacuation a requirement through law. Several have, with several more seeing bills. Yes, there are many concerned about the risks of surgical smoke. 

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How long have you worked in the OR?  Does your state require smoke evacuation?  If not, do the surgeons you work with use smoke evacuators?

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.

I’ve been in the OR about 17 years, my state does not require smoke evacuation, we implemented smoke evacuation bovies with the new fiscal year in July- previous attempts were refuted by the old guard surgeons but now enough of them have retired that it wasn’t an issue. We don’t even stock non smoke evacuation bovies anymore- they don’t have a choice. 

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Do you know of anyone in the field who developed lung cancer and was a non-smoker?

Ughhh I'm just so worried. I am a very health conscious person, so I have been struggling with the fact that I basically smoked for an entire year by being in the OR.

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.

I do not. Please discuss your health concerns with your primary care provider. 

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Specializes in Occupational Health.
On 9/13/2021 at 1:05 PM, April30R said:

Do you know of anyone in the field who developed lung cancer and was a non-smoker?

Ughhh I'm just so worried. I am a very health conscious person, so I have been struggling with the fact that I basically smoked for an entire year by being in the OR.

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2165079917691063

it would seem some measure of caution is warranted but nothing definitive has been established regarding prolonged exposure

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